Finding the right running shoes is not as simple as picking a brand and a color. It’s not rocket science either. The hardest part is realizing that you don’t know how a shoe is suppose to properly fit. That’s ok. New Runners aren’t the only ones who have this issue. In fact many established runners also don’t know the 5 secrets to getting the right running shoe.
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People Mean Well
There is a lot of bad advice out there. Mostly it comes from people who mean well, but don’t truly understand. You will see a lot of advice about tricks to prevent losing toenails, reduce blisters, and prevent plantar fasciitis, but do they ever recommend getting the right shoes?
Not usually, but it is the best advice. And what makes the best running shoe?
Is it the brand?
No.
Is it the color?
Heck no.
Is it finding what fits your foot the best and feels the most comfortable?
Yes.
How do I know?
I managed a Specialty Running Store for a well known brand. During that time I fit thousands of people, led seminars, coached new runners and given advice and help to runners of all levels.
I heard all the bad advice out there. People would come in with all the wring assumptions and questions trying to find a new pair of running shoes. At times it was an uphill battle getting people into the right running shoes.
They would want a specific shoe because their friend likes it, or certain brand because a celebrity wears it. When really they needed the right running shoe for them, not for someone else.
Getting Fit in the Right Running Shoes
The best way to get get the right running shoes is to have someone else find them for you. That doesn’t mean ask someone on Reddit, or hire someone through Taskrabbit. The best way is to go to a speciality running store and get fitted by a professional.
What Makes it a Professional Fitting?
- They talk to you about what you are trying to do with your running.
- They will ask about any injuries, surgeries, or just pain points you have had in the past or are currently having.
- Perform a Gait Analysis to see how your entire body moves through the gait cycle. This will see how your feet, arches, ankles, knees, hips, and even shoulders react.
- Might bring you to a scanning device to understand the pressure point and get your feet sized.
Where to Do This
If you are worried about the cost or time to go through something like this, you shouldn’t. Reputable Running Stores will offer this as a free service because they want you to enjoy running. Also it shouldn’t take more than about 5 minutes to go through the initial process.
For more on finding a great running store read this.
The 5 Secrets to Get the Fit in the Right Running Shoes Every time
Secret 1- The Right Running Shoe Length
Many people wear shoes that are too small. When you put the shoe on and tap your foot back into the heel and stand up you should have about a thumbnail’s length between your longest toe and the end of the shoe. Anything less and you might lose some toenails.
What happened is that while you run your feet swell. They can swell up a size or two and put your toes right at the end of the shoe. Now your toenails are repeatedly striking the end of the shoe, bruising the nail bed, and forcing off your toenails. Wearing the correct length of shoe will provide enough room for those toes to expand without hitting the end of the shoe.
They Keep Growing…(Sort of)
Did you know our feet get bigger over time? They do, it’s unfair and annoying but it happens. They don’t grow, but they continue to spread out over time. So if you were a size 9 in high school, 20 years late you might even be at an 11. It sucks.
(One more secret. Shoe sizes are at best arbitrary depending on what brand you are trying on. So an 11 in one brand might be a 10.5 in another. Don’t care about the number, just care about the fit.)
3 Easy Ways to Fix Knee Pain While Running
Knee pain while running isn’t suppose to happen. We will take a look at the three most common mistakes runners make that cause knee pain.
Secrets of the Couch to 5K
Couch to 5K sounds easy. Too many people gloss over the hard stuff that can break your training. Here we will uncover the pitfalls so you can be triumphant.
Secret 2- The Right Width
Just like the right width, many people either underestimate, or over estimate the width of their feet. Shoe widths are another area where companies do not have a certain standard to follow. So you might wear a regular in one brand and a wide in another.
To get a good sense if the shoe will fit right take out the sock liner. (You might call it the innersole of the shoe.) Put it on the ground and place your foot on top. If you spill over the sides of the sicklier you should go with a wider size.
Secret 3- Let the Laces Do Their Job
One of the biggest problems I faced when fitting people is they would say the shoes were too big. They weren’t. For evidence they would always say their foot was moving around too much or there was a bunch of room in the heel.
They just didn’t tie them right.
Laces are Your Friend
Laces are there to hold the shoe on your foot, right? Wrong, laces hold you foot inside the shoe. When you put a shoe on your heel should be all the way back, then you tighten the laces until they are snug and secure, but not too tight they become uncomfortable. This will hold your foot in place with a little extra room in front to keep your toenails on.
Also correctly tying your shoes makes sure the shoe is landing just right under your foot each time. This can prevent a lot of injuries like Runner’s Knee, Shin Splints, and Plantar Fasciitis.
Secret 4- Support Shoes Can be Bad
I’m not sure what it is, but maybe people seek out support shoes when they don’t need it. At one time the right running shoes may have been support shoes, but things do change over time. The more you run the stronger your feet, ankles and knees get, also the structure of your feet changes, and you may not need support shoes anymore (or if you do, you might need a different style or size.)
Sometimes it seems like people just like the idea of having a support shoe, because support sounds nice. Who doesn’t want a little support?
But if you are looking for the right running shoe it could be actively trying to destroy you.
What Support Shoes Do
Support shoes are specifically designed to prevent the arch from over collapsing and causing the ankle and knee to roll inwards. There are many different ways that shoe manufacturers do this, but essentially they design the shoe to push up on the inside of the foot and allow the outside of the foot to go closer to the ground.
If you don’t need the support it can cause injury. Shoes like this will force your foot, ankle, and knee outward and add stress to bones, ligaments and muscles. Here we can start seeing stress fractures in the feet, IT Band issues, and even Meniscus problems.
Neutral or Support?
A good professional fitting will generally answer this question, but if you are on your own there are a few things to do.
- Just get a neutral shoe. If you haven’t had much issue with anything and are just starting out get a neutral shoe. If you start to notice arch pain, or knee and ankle pain, then you can try switching to a support shoe. Worst thing that happens is the neutral shoe becomes a walking around option.
- Do a self test. This is not nearly as good as a professional test, but it could give you good idea. For the self test you would do two maneuvers in front of a mirror. First is stand on one leg. You may not have the best balance but the key here is to see if your arch is collapsing. Do this with both legs. The other is a squat. Feet shoulder width apart bend at the knees as far as you can. If your arches hold their form and your knees do go inwards you are probably good to get a neutral shoe.
Secret 5- The Right Running Shoes Disappear like Magic
If you have managed to unlock the other 4 secrets then number 5 will take care of itself. But you should know that the shoe should feel like NOTHING.
When it’s the correct size, right support level, and tied correctly the shoe should just disappear and your run should feel natural. There is not break in period for running shoes, they will not stretch to fit your feet. You should be able to go for a run immediately in them.
Don’t Break Them In, Get Used to Them
Now it is a good idea to keep the first run short, but that is mostly to make sure they are right for you. Honestly you could take a new pair of shoes and runaway marathon in them. People have done it. But because manufactures can have discrepancies between individual pairs, its always good to test them out a bit first before going on your longest run.
!!BONUS SECRET!!
The last secret is more of a reality check. Do not search for the perfect shoe. The odds of finding a shoe that is perfect for you and matches your foot exactly and is super comfortable is rare. If you do find it, just know that your time with it will be short, because either the manufacturer will change the design, or your foot will change over time.
That doesn’t mean you have to run in garbage. It just means to not worry about it being perfect. Just worry about it feeling good.
Did You Find the Right Running Shoes?
I hope you did, and I hope this helped. Without actually meeting you in person there is no way I can tell you what shoes are the right running shoes for you.
No one can.
So get off of message boards, social media, and brand websites who all “magically know” the right running shoes for you. (Notice how they are all different suggestions?) and get into the stores and actually try them on.
Remember this is YOUR JOURNEY, find the right running shoes for YOU!
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